Crimson Storm
by RaiLei
Summary: Oneshot. She just couldn't stop staring into those crimson eyes - they were just so captivating... Yuffentine.


(Prelude to Fly Into the Night, when Yuffie met Vincent in Nibelheim. No need to have already read FITN before hand, but I do suggest you read it anyway)

---

Yuffie blinked from the back of the small ragtag group as they entered Nibelheim, the cobbled street stretching out to meet them. She raised an eyebrow as she glanced around the deserted town, confusion written across her face.

Hadn't Nibelheim _burned _down?

She nodded her head.

Yeah, Nibelheim had burned down; Cloud had told them that a little while ago - the Golden Saucer was it? She shrugged, she didn't really remember; she probably wasn't paying any attention.

"What?" Tifa's voice sounded, the bartender glancing around at the still intact town. "This was all supposed to be _burnt_ down, right?"

Yuffie didn't miss the glance Tifa sent in Cloud's direction, she doubted him. Good, so she wasn't the only one. She fought down the urge to roll her eyes, why did she have to get stuck with a bunch of people fighting their way to take down some psycho ShinRa General – honestly, just let the psycho kill himself . . . maybe he'd take out ShinRa as well? She wouldn't complain.

". . . I _thought_ so." Cloud didn't seem too sure.

"Then why . . .?" Tifa glanced back at Cloud, hands on her hips. "My house is still here too . . ."

Yuffie crossed her arms in front of her chest. That must have been weird - knowing your town had burnt down years ago only to return and have it back in one piece.

She narrowed her storm grey eyes – were Cloud and Tifa _lying_ to them?

Could they be working with Sephiroth?

She'd have to keep an eye on them . . . she wasn't sure _if_ they could be trusted yet . . .

"The hell's going on?" She heard Barret comment. "Is this a dream or something?"

_Well, that would make sense_, Yuffie thought idly. _But, we couldn't all be dreaming about the same thing, right?  
_  
"I'm **not** lying!" Cloud shouted, looking at each of his five team mates, before shaking his head. "I remember . . . the intense heat of the flames . . ."

Tifa nodded in agreement, mumbling that she remembered that as well and the anger that she had felt welling up inside her as the memories returned. As the made their way through the town, visiting Cloud and Tifa's childhood homes – pushing Tifa into playing a melody on her piano – and spending the night in the Inn, everything was the same except one small detail. Black cloaked people - they were _**people **_right? They didn't speak well (or at all) – roamed the town and no one they spoke to _knew_ Cloud or Tifa or the fire from five years ago.

That made Yuffie raise her eyebrow, how come _**no **_one remembered? How could the town have been rebuilt (if it indeed was) so fast and without anyone knowing? Maybe it _never _did get burned down and Cloud and Tifa weren't from Nibelheim, but the Midgar Slums.

She groaned, grumbling as she exited the Inn behind Aeris, the sun too bright this early in the morning. She heard Aeris laugh her musical laugh as she looked back at the ninja, waiting for her to catch up.

"Did you sleep at all last night?" Aeris asked, following everyone else up the slope, intent on leaving the deserted town. "I couldn't, not at all! _All_ I could think about were those cloaked people – things? – and augh," Aeris shuddered.

Yuffie laughed at the flower girls response. Aeris _never_ acted like she was twenty-two. Yuffie nodded, hands clasped behind her back. "Me either, they were really weird. I left the light on – did you notice that they _**all**_ stayed in the darkness or the shadows?"

Aeris shook her head. "I should have come to your room last night."

Yuffie nodded, pushing the brunette slightly. "Totally – we should be roommates at the next hotel we're at! We'll be able to take on anything then, don't you think?"Aeris nodded with a sigh. "I _think _the next town in Rocket Town."

Yuffie wrinkled her nose; Rocket Town! She heard the town was linked heavily to ShinRa, like hell she wanted to spend _any_ amount of time there!

They needed something _fun_ to happen . . . and then, she saw **it**.

Looming above the town, an old and rusted Iron Gate surrounding the building, a grin spread across her face. The building looked old, the paint faded and chipped, the next wind might knock the damn thing over.

"_Wow_," she mumbled, her storm grey eyes wide. "We should go _**there**_!" she stated, pointing dramatically to the decrypted home.

"Why?" Aeris muttered, eyebrows quirked. "It looks kind of _creepy_ in my opinion."

Not to mention the fact that a couple of those weird black cloaked things were roaming around the building – they were probably inside too.

"Don't worry Aeris, Cloud will protect you," Yuffie whispered, with a wink. She knew the flower girl liked the blonde mercenary, but she couldn't figure out Cloud's reactions for the life of her – he was like _stone_. "Besides, it'll be an adventure . . . and Cloud? Didn't you say this was the mansion you visited with Sephiroth?"

Cloud squinted up at the decrypted building; the sun was at such a horrible angle. "Yeah, yeah that's it. It might help us in our quest . . . let's check it out guys."

Tifa nodded, balling her hands up into fists as she joined the blonde's side. "I'm going . . . I _want_ to know what's happening here. I remember the fire vaguely . . . he _**killed**_ my father! I want answers!"

"Count me in too!" Aeris grinned, holding her rod up before her.

"Heey! Wait for me!" Yuffie pouted, as everyone else agreed, following Cloud as he shouldered open the old and creaky Iron Gate. She waved her hands over her head as she ran after them, slipping in through the gate. "I want to go too - you're all mean, you know that right?"

Aeris laughed, pausing in the middle of the lawn as the ninja stopped before her. "_I'm_ mean?"

"Not you, Aeris!" Yuffie laughed, looping her arm with the flower girl, the two starting up the unkempt lawn, the rest of the group already in the house. "You're my _best _friend after all, you know that."

And it was true, she'd never really had a friend until she met Aeris; her father had liked to keep her in the Pagoda grounds.

Aeris smiled down at Yuffie. "I'm glad; I'd hate to think something came between us."

"Awe, you know I love you, Aeris," Yuffie laughed, pushing open the ornate and heavy doors.

She _never_ wanted anything to happen between her and Aeris; she liked the flower girl too much . . .

The inside of the mansion didn't look any better then it did on the outside. Yuffie frowned, it looked like the place _hadn't_ been used since the last time Cloud was there – if he was there at all. The floor used to be hardwood, she assumed, but the floor was so dusty you could hardly see what colour the wood had been. The only breaks in the heavy dust were their footprints. Her storm grey eyes located the others moments later; Cloud stood in the middle of the large foyer, the others standing around him, looking worried – _especially_ Tifa.

"Hey, what's going on guys?" Yuffie called, dropping her arm from Aeris as she clasped her hands behind her back.

She heard Aeris' musical laugh from behind her as she tiptoed towards the large group, the flower girl just steps behind her.

"What did you guys find?" Yuffie asked, stopping behind them. She frowned, having to stand on the tiptoes to look over Cait Sith's crown, the moogle swaying back and forth as it tried to stand still. She could see a piece of paper in Cloud's hands; it looked really old in her opinion. "What's that Cloud? Is it a letter from Sephiroth?"

She saw Tifa shake her head before glancing over at her. "It **sounds** like a riddle . . ."

"A riddle?" Yuffie smiled widely, her storm grey eyes flicking back to the paper Cloud was holding. "Let me see that! I can solve these things, no problem!"

"I doubt it," Cloud said offhandedly, not looking up from the paper in hand.

Yuffie suppressed the urge to roll her eyes – Cloud didn't think they could trust her. Well . . . they couldn't, but, still! She _wanted _to see that paper! Shaking her head, she pushed Cait Sith's overstuffed moogle aside, leaning over before gripping the small paper in the mercenary's hands. As she pulled on it, the mercenary still holding on to the other side, a loud rip sounded.

"You ripped it," Barret shouted, pointing an accusatory finger in Yuffie's direction. "You're such a klutz."

"Shut up," Yuffie rolled her eyes as she shot Barret a look, flipping the paper around to read the old, scrawled writing, briefly showing it to the older man. "See, no rip! Well, **only** at the bottom – big deal, old man."

She could see he wanted to shoot something back at her, but she saw Aeris elbow him in the shoulder, shaking her head – she'd have to remember to thank Aeris later.

"Let's see, it says; '_I must get rid of all those that stand in the way on my research. Even that one from the Turks_," Yuffie paused, a frown on her features as she read that last line. She huffed, crumpling the note into a ball. "It's about a **Turk**, who cares."

"Yuffie, don't say that," Aeris chided, picking up the crumbled paper as Yuffie dropped it, deciding not to throw it across the room, how _childish_. "It's still a human being, it sounds like this guy is – _was_? – in trouble. If it's a riddle, maybe he's still here, trapped somewhere?"

"Or at least his _bones_ are here . . ." She could resist adding that.

"Yuffie, _stop_ that!" Aeris huffed, smoothing the note out, her emerald eyes scanning over the page. "_I scientifically altered him, and put him to sleep in the basement. If you want to find him, then search the area._"

"Scientifically altered . . .? This sounds pretty creepy . . ."

_Not really_, Yuffie thought. _Obviously they never had any pets_ . . .

"Don't worry Tifa. Put him to sleep – it's just another word for **dead, **my father did that once to my cat . . ."

"There's still more," Aeris cut in, shaking her head. "_But, this is merely a game I thought of. It is not necessary for you to participate if you don't want too_."

"See, we don't **have** to participate," Yuffie cut in. There was _no_ way she was going to go off and look for some old dead _Turk_. "Let's just look for clues about Sephiroth, _not _some Turk."

"I think we should look for the clues. I'd feel bad knowing that we left someone to rot, locked up in the basement," Aeris frowned looking behind her at the dusty old mansion. "I wonder how old this is – now, let's see, something about a safe next. _Move the dial on the safe carefully, but quickly. You have twenty seconds. You can't go past the numbers while turning. The four hints for the numbers are_ . . ."

"What are the clues?" Tifa asked, trying to concentrate.

Yuffie rolled her eyes – they weren't even _listening_ to her.

"_The lid to the box with the most oxygen, Behind Ivory's short of tea and ray, the creak in the floor near the chair on the second floor . . . to the left five steps, up nine, left two, up six, and the fourth number is Right 97_."

"Okay, so we have one of the numbers, let's split up and have a look around. Aeris, you go with Yuffie, Tifa you come with me, Barret –"

"I'm going on my own; I don't need any help."

"Alright," Cloud shrugged. "Cait Sith, Red XIII, you can go together. Let's meet back here in twenty minutes."

---

"That thing was pretty ugly," Yuffie muttered, picking herself up off the ground, brushing the dust off her clothes as Aeris tossed a Phoenix Down at her. "Whose freaky idea was it to put that purple **thing** in a safe?"

Stretching, she stood up, glaring back at the now open safe, a grin coming to her features as she saw a faint glow of something red. Materia? She frowned as Tifa stepped between her and safe, leaning down. She hoped Tifa wouldn't take _her _materia.

"It was orange too . . ." Aeris amended quietly.

"It's still ugly as hell." Yuffie shrugged, her nose curling up.

"It was called Lost Number," Tifa called, finding a message scratched onto the safe's door. She squinted to look at the faded words, her nose a couple inches away from the door. "There was something else written here too, but most seems to be scratched away."

"Really?" Cloud frowned, coming to the brunette's side, leaning down over her. "Hmm . . . defeated my experiment . . . key to the basement . . . Valentine . . . curse . . . for eternity – that's all that's legible."

"A curse?" Yuffie mused, hands clasped behind her back as she wandered towards the door. This was getting _way_ too deep for her; all she wanted was their materia! "I say we don't use the key . . . but, I _hate_ an unsolved mystery, keeps me up at – hey! I found a materia, it's mine!"

"What a one track mind."

"Whatever, that's Yuffie, let's get to the basement." Cloud shrugged, taking the led of the group, once more leaving the small room.

"It looks pretty good, doesn't it Cait?" Yuffie laughed, showing the robotic cat the orb before sticking it into an empty slot on her Conformer.

"It does, what is it?"

"Summon materia," Yuffie shrugged, unsure what creature resided within.

---

Yuffie shivered as they made their way down through the secret doorway and down the rickety, wooden stairwell. Yuffie thought it might collapse, wouldn't termites have found it by now? Aeris voiced similar complaints, not wanting to go down the stairs. Yuffie had grinned at the flower girl; she wondered how Aeris had come into the whole AVALANCE idea . . . she looked too nice to be wrapped up into this whole plot to kill Sephiroth. She just _couldn't_ see her killing someone.

"It'll be alright, Aeris, we're all here," Cloud had said, holding out a hand to the flower girl.

Yuffie rolled her eyes, did Cloud like Aeris? He _seemed_ to, but as soon as she thought he liked the flower girl, everything would be about Tifa. Cloud was definitely one hard person to read! She saw Tifa frown from the front of the quay, hands clenching into fists before stalking down the curled stairwell as Aeris gripped Cloud's hands, her cheeks red.

_They should have installed a heater_, Yuffie thought idly, hands running up and down her arms as they made their way down the cold underground basement.

The basement was so cold; she hoped Sephiroth was down here, or at least some _clue_ as to where the psychotic General would have gone too. She noticed Aeris had let go of Cloud's hand when they reached the bottom of the stairwell, but the flower girl had stayed close to the mercenary's side. It was kind of comical; Tifa had been waiting at the bottom of the stairs for their _leader_ and upon seeing Aeris still close to him, had taken up the position one his other side. Barret and Red weren't far behind them, the two talking about something – she heard the name _Marlene _come up a couple times. She was curious as to who that was, but she wasn't going to be around that long . . .

Yuffie paused as the hardwood floor reached out to meet them, the chatter of the small group growing minutely louder. Cloud said that there was some _study_ located down here – who the hell would put a library down here, Yuffie had thought idly to herself. In their hurry to get to the study and see what they could find out, Yuffie saw _it_.

She paused, flicking her storm grey eyes to the group nearing the end of the hallway.

She moved closer to the door, it was completely black _and_ hidden in the shadows. No wonder why they had missed it!

Reaching a gloved hand out, she ran her hand across the door. It was cold, just like the room.

She shivered; her hand closing around the doorknob.

Grinning to herself, she pushed on the door.

Her grin turned into a frown, it was _locked._

Leaning down, Yuffie saw a small keyhole.

Crossing her arms over her chest, a frown on her features, she tapped her foot impatiently.

There _had_ to be something good in there and she couldn't get to it! How **unfair**!

Wait, didn't Cloud have a key? After they beat Lost Number . . .

"Cloud!" She yelled, whirling around on her heel and running in the direction of the mercenary.

Cloud paused, a hand on the doorknob at the end of the hall. He glanced back at Yuffie, rolling his eyes. "What is it, Yuffie?" Why did she _always _have to be so loud?

"Do you still have the key we found?" The mercenary nodded slowly. "I _need_ it then."

Cloud raised an eyebrow. "What for?"

"I _found_ a door! There must be something good on the other side – it's locked!" She said, clasping her hands in front of her, rocking back on the heels of her feet.

_Like materia, lots of materia_, she thought greedily.

"We're on a mission to find Sephiroth," Cloud said after a stretch of silence.

Yuffie rolled her eyes. "But, don't you think there'd be more information in a _locked_ room then an _**un**_locked one?"

"She has a point . . ." Aeris trailed off, casting her emerald eyes from Yuffie to Cloud.

Cloud sighed. "Fine . . . we'll take a _quick_ look around if it'll make you be quiet."

Yuffie glared at him, but nodded anyway. "It's back this way," she turned on her heel, heading back for the shadowed door. "I'm so _curious_."

All that materia, all hers!! She couldn't wait.

She rocked back and forth on her heels as she waited for the others to come by, Cloud fishing the old key from his pockets and fitting it into the keyhole. Yuffie grinned widely as she heard the lock click open, it fit! It worked! She quickly pushed Cloud aside as he unlocked the door – she wanted to be the first one to see all that materia!

As she entered the room, she frowned. There wasn't _any_ materia, just . . . _**coffins**_ – how CREEPY! Aeris was right, this place was creepy! She smiled slightly as she heard Aeris stifle a gasp as she entered the room, the flower girl remaining at the back of the room. The small room was lined with coffins against the wall, one resting in the middle of the room.

_How odd_, Yuffie thought, but she didn't think anything more of it. There probably wasn't any room left against the walls . . .

She blinked, glaring at Cloud as he pushed past her, her back hitting one of the closed coffins. She suppressed a shudder at the cold feeling against her back, slowly moving away from the coffin, inching herself over to Cloud's side as she saw him running his hand across the coffin in the middle of the room, the mercenary moving to _open_ the coffin.

Did he _want_ to see someone's bones?

She never knew Cloud was into that sort of thing . . .

She watched him push the lid off – was it _really_ that heavy? – but when the lid came loose, clattering loudly to the floor; Yuffie wanted to scream. She thought Aeris actually _did_ scream, no one was expecting there to be someone inside of the coffin – not someone _alive_ though.

As Yuffie moved to join Cloud's side, she had _no_ idea how her life would change.

A pair of crimson coloured eyes stared back at her in the black coloured coffin.

"Who is it!? ...Never seen you before. You must leave."

Yuffie blinked – his voice, it sounded so . . . _so_ warm?

"You were having a nightmare."

Yuffie wanted to look up at Cloud and frown at him. She didn't want to hear _Cloud_ speak . . .

"I woke ya up. You outta be thankin' me."

Yuffie closed her eyes, shaking her head at Barret's words. Barret could wake _anyone_ up, he was almost as loud as she was.

"Hmph... a nightmare...? My long sleep has given me time to atone."

Her eyes opened as she heard him speak once more. She wished he would speak more . . .

"What are you saying?"

She nodded to what Cloud said; she didn't really understand his words either. A nightmare, here? Well, his appearance would give them all nightmares . . . you don't _expect_ someone to be **alive** in a coffin.

"I have nothing to say to strangers. Get out. This mansion is the beginning of your nightmare."

_Too late_, Yuffie thought. _You've already got Aeris_.

". . . you can say that again."

Yuffie shook her head, Cloud was going to tell that story _again_, wasn't he?

"Hmm? What do you know?"

Yuffie glanced down at him, her storm grey eyes looking intently at him. She saw him crimson eyes look momentarily at her – she wasn't sure why she felt her heartbeat pick up slightly at his glance. She never had that feeling before . . .

"Talk about Sephiroth. Like you said, this mansion is the beginning of a nightmare," Cloud shook his head, glancing back at his companions before looking back at the man. "No, it's not a dream, it's for real. Sephiroth has lost his mind. He found the secrets hidden in this mansion . . ."

"Sephiroth!? You know Sephiroth?" Yuffie jumped slightly at his suddenly firm voice, the sudden ice coming from him made her shiver. "You start first."

Yuffie sighed; this was going to be a _long_ conversation then, right? Rolling her eyes, she glanced behind her, the coffin lid on the ground now, the dust disturbed. The strange man was sitting up in the coffin now, looking blankly at Cloud. It was like they were only a _disturbance_ to him, she didn't like that thought, it made her frown. As Cloud began to explain, she sat down on the edge of the coffin, her mind going blank as Cloud started regaling the story from five years ago.

You could only hear that story so many times before it made you want to scream. Her storm grey eyes stayed on the strange man who looked detachedly back at the small ragtag group. Yuffie frowned as she watched him, she wondered what he had hidden underneath his cloak; she noticed he kept one of his hands hidden from view. She had a hard time fighting down the urge to lean over and push the red cloak back, and for the life of her, she couldn't _imagine_ why she wanted to do that . . .

"That's how it was."

Yuffie jumped out of her thoughts as Cloud finished telling his story, a sudden silence engulfing the room. They were all waiting for the man to speak, all eyes on him now. Yuffie glanced back at him as well, wishing he would speak. She didn't really care what he said, she just wanted to _hear_ him. She wanted to shake her head, what was wrong with her?

"So Sephiroth knows he was created five years ago? And about the Jenova Project? ...He was missing, but has just recently reappeared. He has taken many lives and is seeking the Promised Land."

Yuffie nodded slowly, she thought that was right. She never really listened to what the blonde said most times.

"Now it's your turn."

Yuffie glanced back at him, her legs swinging back and forth as she was still perched on the edge of the coffin.

"Sorry... I cannot speak."

"Hey! You lyin' white-faced!"

She frowned, she wanted to hear him speak so then she'd have a reason to look at him. She had felt Aeris's eyes on her as Cloud told his story, her eyes staring unfocused at the strange man. But, she didn't agree with what Barret said. Sure, he really needed to see the sun, but he wasn't lying . . . she thought. How could he be? After being locked in a coffin . . . what _could_ he have to say? Although, she wished to know more about the man . . . why he was here – of all places!

"Hearing your stories has added upon me yet another sin. More nightmares shall come to me now, more than I previously had. Now... please leave."

Another nightmare? He didn't look that scary to her . . . he wouldn't star as some horrible creature in _her_ dreams. She had to frown though, she didn't _want_ to leave the small room . . . well, she _did _but she _didn't_ at the same time. She fought down the urge to shake her head – she wasn't making any sense!

"Who are you? At least tell us your name."

Yuffie wanted to smack herself – how could she _not_ have thought of that? She glanced back at the man, would he even answer? It seemed like he didn't want to talk about himself and _why_ he was here in this . . . _coffin_ room.

"I was with... the Shinra Manufacturing Department in Administrative Research, otherwise known as-- the Turks... Vincent."

_Vincent_? Yuffie thought to herself, that wasn't a bad name. It seemed to suit him; dark, mysterious and what was the right word, anti-social maybe? However, she had to curl up her nose, he _was_ a Turk? Yuffie picked herself up off the edge of the coffin; she wasn't sure what to think anymore . . .

"The Turks!?"

_Obviously, blondie's surprised as well_, she thought, hearing the surprise in Cloud's voice.

"_Formerly_ of the Turks, I have no affiliation with Shinra now. ...And you?"

Yuffie let out a breath she didn't know she was holding, Vincent's eyes crimson eyes looking momentarily at the small ninja. Yuffie felt her heartbeat speed up momentarily as she caught his eye. She took a deep breath before smiling at him, waving to acknowledge him. He didn't respond.

"Cloud, formerly of SOLDIER."

Yuffie frowned, wanting nothing more then to shoot a dark glare in Cloud's direction as Vincent's eyes moved back to the blonde mercenary.

"You were also with Shinra...? Then do you know Lucrecia?"

_Lucrecia, who's that?_ Yuffie thought, looking from Vincent to Cloud.

By the look on Cloud's face, it didn't seem like he knew either. "Who?" Nope, he didn't know either.

". . . Lucrecia, the woman who gave birth to Sephiroth."

Yuffie's eyes widened, hearing Aeris gasp behind her – she almost had forgotten the others were there.

". . . gave birth...? Wasn't Jenova Sephiroth's mother?"

Yeah, wasn't that what Cloud said?, Yuffie asked herself.

"That isn't completely wrong, but just a theory. He was born from a beautiful lady. That lady was Lucrecia. She was an assistant to Professor Gast of the Jenova Project. Beautiful Lucrecia."

Yuffie frowned, casting her eyes to the cement floor away from him. It shouldn't have surprised her that he had someone else already, who was she anyway? Just some random girl who showed up with a bunch of random people who woke him up from some eternal sleep, that's who. Yuffie paused, _eternal sleep_? Was he a . . . _vampire_? She wanted to laugh, her imagination was too wild.

". . . A human experiment?"

Yuffie glanced sharply up at Cloud, _could_ that be possible? Who would want to _willingly_ do a experiment on themselves, or their child? ShinRa was definitely messed up . . .

"There was no way to cancel the experiment. I couldn't stop her. That was my sin. I let the one I loved, the one I respected most, face the worst."

"That why you started sleepin' in a box? Gimme a break!"

Yuffie took a deep breath, she didn't – couldn't – laugh, even though Barret phrased it in an awkward, but sort of funny, way.

"Let me sleep . . ." and then the coffin closed.

Suddenly, Barret's comment wasn't funny anymore – he got Vincent _mad_ at them. She glared over at the larger man who wasn't paying any attention to her; like always. She frowned as she felt Cloud's hand on her back, pushing her out of the room before him. She twisted in his grasp to look back at the now closed coffin – she guessed he _wouldn't_ be joining them now. She wasn't sure why, but suddenly she felt like she wanted nothing more then to leave the small ragtag group behind, it was getting too deep, it wasn't _fun_ anymore.

"Well, that was . . . interesting," Tifa eventually said, starting down the hallway to the library again.

"I think I feel sorry for him, something must have happened . . ." Aeris said, wringing her hands together in front of her.

"I say we just forget about what we just saw," Barret said with a shrug. "I ain't working with any Turk."

_That's right, he was a Turk_, Yuffie thought to herself, remaining silent. _But he didn't seem to keen about that anymore? Did something happen to him? Maybe he's wanted and has been hiding out. But that Lucrecia person . . . _the thought made Yuffie frown, it couldn't be his girlfriend, right?

She didn't know why she cared, but somehow it just struck a cord with her heart. _How strange_, she shrugged, following the others into the small study.

Her nose curled up as she entered the room, talk about _no_ fun; it was a desk, rows and rows of books . . . and an _experiment tank_?

_Oh yes . . ._ every _library needs one of those_. Yuffie rolled her eyes, smirking slightly.

"Sephiroth!"

Yuffie jumped at Cloud's yell – you were supposed to be quiet in study's, libraries, whatever you wanted to call this place.

"Being here brings back memories. Are you going to participate in the Reunion?"

The cold voice made her shiver. She raised an eyebrow at Aeris, following the flower girl around the corner.

"I don't even know what a Reunion is!"

And, that was the first time she had ever seen this Sephiroth – the great ShinRa General of the Wutai – ShinRa War.

"Jenova will be at the Reunion. Jenova will join the Reunion becoming a calamity from the skies."

The silver hair, the cold blue eyes (did they look like Cloud's?) and the black outfit. What caught her eye the most though was the long silver sword at his waist, that had to have been about twenty feet long, right?

"Jenova, a calamity from the skies? You mean she wasn't an Ancient!?"

As her storm grey eyes looked curiously at the large sword, she wondered how the hell he managed to carry it around – let alone wield it. Wouldn't it make him tilt to one side, having all that extra weight on one side?

". . . I see. I don't think you have the right to participate. I will go North past Mt. Nibel. If you wish to find out... then follow . . ."

". . . Reunion? Calamity from the skies?"

Yuffie's eyes widened as she saw a small, colourful ball left Sephiroth's hands – throwing it at Cloud. She had to smile a little bit as she heard the colourful ball make a small thud against Cloud's forehead. She saw Cloud rub his forehead – Yuffie wondered if there would be a red mark there in the morning – as he bent down to pick up the materia. She watched hungrily as he picked up, she wanted to know what it was _and_ if he'd give it to her.

She frowned as he stored it away in his weapon, turning back to the group. "C'mon, let's go. Sephiroth is going North, we need to get to Rocket Town tonight. We'll try to find a way to the Northern Continent when there."

Everyone nodded, filling out the small room and back into the cool underground, secret basement. The coolness quickly seeped through her thin outfit, making the small ninja shiver, running her hands up her arms to try and stay warm till they were back in the old, dusty mansion above. She threw a glance at the shadowed door to the coffin room as she past it by.

She'd admit it – she wished he would come out, _join_ them – it might just make his silly little mission more interesting.

"Wait! If I go with you I meet Hojo?"

Yuffie paused, halfway down the cool hallway as she heard his voice. Being in the back of the small ragtag group, she got a good look at him, for once not in the coffin. He didn't look too bad, he looked _good_ in her opinion; real good. She shook her head though, she wouldn't allow herself to think anything of the ex-Turk, she was only here to steal their materia, right? Right?

But, for some reason, she wasn't completely sure . . .

"Dunno. But we're after him and Sephiroth. So, I guess sooner or later . . ."

"Lucrecia . . . all right, I've decide to go with you."

"W – what?"

"Being a former Turks, I may be of help to you . . ."

"All right, then."

Yuffie saw Cloud nod – that was his way of saying yes. She felt her heartbeat pick up again as the gunslinger fell into step beside her – but not close enough to actually look at her, speak to her. Yuffie took a deep breath, closing her eyes momentarily before looking over at him. Yuffie allowed a grin to come across her features as he looked at her, crimson met grey as Yuffie held the gaze, the small group stopping at the single file rickety stairwell.

"I'm Yuffie," she chirped, rocking on the balls on her feet, hands swinging on either side of her small frame. "I'm the Greatest Ninja Ever!"

He just looked at her, crimson eyes looking blankly at the lively girl before him.

Yuffie frowned, crossing her arms across her chest. "Well, at least you _could_ say _**hello**_, jeez!"

Starting up the rickety old stairwell after Aeris, aware of the gunslinger behind her, she figured they'd get along great – they were both the outsiders.

---

Yes, I had the sudden urge to write when Yuffie met Vincent, so let me know what you think! Inspiration was Teardrops on my guitar by Taylor Swift - great song.


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